College of Engineering

LSU Mechanical Engineering Professor Guoqiang Li's paper introducing a new material model for shape memory polymers (SMPs) has been published in the prestigious Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids. Additionally, he is the co-author of a book to be released next month, titled "Artificial Intelligence Assisted Structural Optimization."

The country's aging infrastructure has long been an issue and presents a number of problems, including accurately understanding its viability. Existing sensors and structural health monitoring (SHM) approaches have limitations, such as high costs, limited durability, compatibility issues, and frequent maintenance needs. However, LSU Civil and Environmental Engineering Assistant Professor Yen-Fang Su believes there is a promising alternative in the form of self-sensing cementitious composites (SSCCs) due to their sensing performance, compatibility with concrete structures, and relative lower costs.

LSU researchers have created a new, low-cost way to break down plastic, a potential breakthrough that could save billions of dollars and eliminate billions of tons of plastic pollution.